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Guys, 2016 was weird. It was drunk and needed to go home hours ago, but it persisted and now seems to be loitering its way into 2017. I hate to get to political, but I wanted to share a few thoughts and some photos from the recent protests that have popped up across the globe. It's no secret I supported Hillary for president, and as many friends can attest to, I'm sure I was quite annoying about it at times. So when the election results came in, like millions of others, I felt disappointed, angry, frustrated, and scared. But like President Obama said in his farewell speech, we have to keep fighting, we have to keep showing up. And for many of us (specifically, white women, including me), there's been a lot to fight for over the years that we haven't showed up for and we have to be able to acknowledge where we failed and do better.

I've never been the most eloquent with describing my personal thoughts and before I lose steam, I'll say this. My 2017-and-beyond resolution is to be more vocal, more engaged in what's happening in my community, to be speak up when it's not easy, and to do my part, as small as it may be, to help preserve and achieve the rights of everyone. My parents came to this country as immigrants almost 35 years ago and I grew up on a diverse, busy city street full of kids my age; the majority of us speaking multiple languages at home. This is the America I love. A country that provided my family and the families of many of my friends with opportunities they wouldn't have otherwise had. Still, a lot more work is needed to make life more just and equal for everyone who lives here, and for that reason we'll continue to resist.

Here are some resources I find to be helpful:

Town Hall Project - list of dates for town halls in your city so you can voice your concerns with your state reps / senators

Resistance Manual - stay up to date on the issues and find calls to action for how to get involved

Issue Voter - sign up to opt into the issues you care about and receive alerts on upcoming bills for you to tell your rep how you'd like them to vote

Indivisible Guide - a helpful resource to understand how to be active, organize, and resist effectively

#ResistTrump Protests - list of protests happening near you that you can attend, updated regularly by the CAP team (Center for American Progress)

Swing Left - find the swing district closest to you to help turn it blue

The photos below were taken at the Women's March in Boston and CAIR's Boston Protest Against Muslim Ban and Anti-Immigration Orders. Thank you to the many organizers for their hard work and perseverance.